Teams: Western Conference-- Pacific

Teams: Western Conference-- Pacific

Golden State Warriors

Coach: Mike Montgomery

Is this the year that the Warriors get over the hump and make the playoffs in the uber-difficult West? Probably not. But they do have some talent.

For starters, Richardson continues to be an offensive powerhouse. Use this dunking machine to drive the lane or try to hit him with alley-oop passes to get him into the high-flying action. Or, penetrate with Richardson and kick the rock back out to Dunleavy for three.

On the defensive side, Fisher is a high-quality ball-ganker. Get out and pressure the opponent's dribbler and steal, steal, steal. Fisher's quickness can also work to your advantage at the other end. He is just small and spry enough to sneak in the lane and spin his way to easy lay-ups.

LA Clippers

Coach: Mike Dunleavy

With the Lakers losing Shaq, will the Clippers be the team to watch in LA? Well, that's pretty unlikely, but they are not without stars of their own.

Kittles and Brand are definitely the two guys on the roster who earn this distinction, and Maggette is consistently good as well. Most of the team's scoring should flow through these three. Brand is a good blend of quickness and power and can muscle into the lane for some quick scoring opportunities. Kittles is more on the finesse tip, but he can still penetrate... or pull up for a mid-to-long range jumper.

Both the point guard Jaric and Kittles bear the lock icon, and you know what that means... tough D. Adding to the swiping ability of the guards is the big-swat potential of the two big men--Kaman and Brand. Stay near the hoop, time your jumps, and set some Clipper records!

LA Lakers

Coach: Rudy Tomjanovich

The loss of Shaq, Payton, Fisher and Fox has depleted the lineup significantly. But Kobe is still there, and Divac has returned to lend his presence on the inside.

Some other key additions have been made to the purple and gold as well--forwards Grant and Odom. Almost everybody on this lineup can drive to the hoop and score, so keep pounding the ball inside, loosen it up there, then look for outside stuff with Kobe. Or go with the Chucky Atkins diet of steady threes.

Defensively, the Lakers should still be alright, although not as strong as they were with Shaq and Payton. Try to hassle people early with Kobe, and look to shut people down inside with Vlade the Impaler.

Phoenix Suns

Coach: Mike D'Antoni

The Suns should easily improve on last year's dismal outing with the addition of shooting dynamo Steve Nash. Continuing down the roster, the Suns have above-average folks at nearly every spot.

Stoudamire is the explosive inside threat, Marion is another quick scorer and staunch defender (and the best player on this roster), and Richardson has big play potential as well from beyond the arch.

On the flip, the overall team speed and athleticism makes for a defense that will harass every ball-handler. Get in the opposition's face, try to force the steal and use quickness to intercept errant passes.

Sacramento Kings

Coach: Rick Adelman

The Kings are another powerhouse in the West. They return many of their excellent starters, including one of the league's best point guards in Mike Bibby, and one of the deepest benches around.

Jackson is perhaps the most lethal sixth man in the NBA, and Greg Ostertag can provide some veteran minutes in crucial stages of the game.

The Kings can pretty much do it all. If you like to shoot threes, set up screens for Stojakovic, Bibby and Jackson. If you like the power game, feed Webber and Miller and let them take it hard to the rack. Use the back down moves and shoot out of this to gain tons of points and opportunities for visits to the charity stripe.